Sunday, January 9, 2011

Bacon and Black Bean Soup

I spent the day making cinnamon swirl bread, using a recipe from The New Best Recipe. Cinnamon swirl bread is kind of magical. My son, who is not normally a big carb advocate wanted an endless supply of this bread.

Dinner was a new recipe that I made up as I went along. I had a big pile of black beans I wanted to use up so that is where I started and this is where I ended up:

Bacon and Black Bean Soup

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 large shallot, minced

5 pieces of bacon, diced

4 cups cooked black beans

3 medium carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

2 stocks of celery, cut into 1/4 inch pieces

3 cups stock

1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp pepper
Tabasco
salt

Sour Cream

Toast the cumin seeds in a dry skillet shaking the skillet frequently. You can tell the cumin is done by smell. Bend your head down over the skillet and when the smell of toasted cumin fills your nose (but before the cumin seeds turn dark), they are done. Grind in a spice mill or with a mortar and pestle.

In a large heavy pot over medium heat, saute the bacon until most of the fat renders and it starts to turn golden. Add the carrots and celery and stir to mix. Saute until the vegetables begin to soften. Add the shallot and garlic and saute for another couple of minutes.

Add the beans, stock, pepper, 3 dashes of Tabasco and cumin. Bring to a boil, stir and lower the heat to a simmer. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Let simmer for 20 minutes.

If the soup needs thinning, add more water or stock and bring back to a simmer. Put about 1/3 of the total contents in a blender and puree. Add it back to the pot and stir to blend. Serve in bowls with a dollop of sour cream on top.

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Thank you for visiting Salt on the Table; my name is Sonia and I am the author. This blog chronicles the portion of my life that is devoted to food and what inspires me in the kitchen. The recipes I create, cookbooks I read, restaurants I visit, food I encounter on my travels, as well as some occasional musings on food.